This is why we've ALWAYS wanted to drive the BTCC legend Volvo 850 T-5R! | TheCarGuys.tv

This is why we've ALWAYS wanted to drive the BTCC legend Volvo 850 T-5R!
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#Volvo850 #850T5R #BTCC
In this week’s episode - TheCarGuys drive one of the icons of the Nineties, the iconic Volvo 850 T-5R - the estate car that rocked the BTCC and rewrote the rules of racing!
This fine example was found at Fast Classics and is a pristine original paint, 1995 launch yellow edition, purchased in the UK, but then shipped and cared-for in Japan ever since. Now it has just 58k miles - the best example of this car TheCarGuys have ever seen.
Can near-thirty-year-old estate car can really be any fun? Exactly how fast is it? How does it handle the twisty bits? Will Damian’s cough ruin this episode? Is this an instant purchase? All these questions and more will be answered in this episode.
To contact Fast Classics about similar cars to this one, please call them on the following number 01483 338903, or visit the website - www.fast-classics.com.
Created by two ordinary guys with an obsession for cars, TheCarGuys.tv is a digital channel that celebrates everything automotive - supercars, classics, quirky, hidden gems and those in the TCG garage.
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Regular episodes include: Real World Tests, Car Buying Challenges, Meet Your Heroes, This Week’s Rant and Top 5s.
WatchGuys
In this episode, Mr Taylor is wearing a Tudor Black Bay ‘Harrods’. Mr Butt is wearing a Doxa SUB 300T Divingstar ‘Poseidon’ special edition.
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Special thanks
Fast Classics - www.fast-classics.com.
Additional pr image @2020 Volvo Car Corporation
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Credits
The CarGuys are:
Damian Butt
Jason Taylor
Music
PG Butt (title)
Epidemic Sound
TheCarGuys.tv equipment:
GoPro Hero 4 (video)
Final Cut Pro x (video)
Sony AX-53 (video)
Rode NT1-A (sound)
Shure X2u (sound)
Marantz Professional sound shield (sound)

[@Rico-bj2gy]

I love that you guys don’t just do super cars. The varied content and the fact that your passion covers all kinds of cars makes this the most interesting car channel on KZbin

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Cheers, Rico

[@glyph241]

@@TheCarGuysTV My Dad had an 850 Turbo Sedan, My Mom had a 960 Wagon and they bought me a 1996 Honda Accord for my sixteenth… 🚘👃🏽🚘

[@mattiasjohansson7231]

My first car! Dreamed of owning one from 7 yrs of age and then by 17 i had worked my ass off and so I had the opportunity to buy the car I saw when I was 7 so i bought it and restored it to it's former showroom glory.. will never sell it. ☺️

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Incredible - well done, sir

[@nl3712]

This is how an estate car should look. Pure pragmatism and packaging.

[@Zantrop64]

James May? Is that you ?

[@kennethyearwood5127]

Nothing drives better,

[@yutehube4468]

Bloody fast as well, for an estate!

[@Gambantein]

I remember the World Championship Athletics in Gothenburg where a lot of big signs had THE BEST Volvo ad ever! It was a picture of this yellow T5-R estate with the text: "Yellow but not Chicken"

[@propellerhead67]

Used to have an 850R in red and loved it, a guy from work with his new BMW Z3 overtook me showing off to his mate, I had to show him just what a wardrobe on wheels could do. Arriving back at work having followed him round a number of roundabouts and him not being able to pull away I couldn’t help but smile. Let’s say he wasn’t best pleased and his mate couldn’t stop laughing :)

[@TheCarGuysTV]

😂😂

[@TallDrink911]

The volvo 850 T-5R is a special car. What a wonderful video.A buddy of mine in high school had one of these and we had so much fun on road trips. Until he tried to escape the cops on a high speed run and unceremoniously crashed into a telephone poll. What a thrill! Thanks for taking me down memory lane.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Tall Drink You’re welcome - thanks for sharing

[@dam00r]

As a Swede, I'm super excited to watch this video!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Fatwomanfarting Hope you enjoy it

[@fredriktorstensson4630]

Soooo, youre a Swedish fat woman farting?

[@icsunonove72]

@@fredriktorstensson4630 The funny thing is that in Swedish 'fart' means speed. Don't be surprised if you encounter a fart camera (fartkamera) along the road, 'cause that's exactly what we call them.

[@fredriktorstensson4630]

icsunonove72 jodå man har ju tyvärr träffat på några sånna dära.

[@SillyMoustache]

In the '70s I had a Swedish girlfriend called Lisbeth, her name at school was "fisalisa" !

[@yute-hube779]

Used to drool over this car in my Max Power days as a late teenager in the 1990's... and still do! What I always noticed was those wheels.

[@geoffhoward5241]

Ran several Volvo's back in the 80's and the dealer lent me a 850 TR saloon, and it was magic,, still remember it now

[@alanwayte1688]

My late Father treated himself to T5R to replace an awful Vauxhall Senator..Auto 2.5 that was so boring to drive , he previously owned a Sierra X4 x4 and was offered a fantastic deal when I purchased my Astra GTE 16v as we worked together in our own business we tended to change cars together, he drove the Vauxhall for a month then without saying a word turned up in Volvo that he loved and kept for 8 years ..We has two Labradors who use to bark to make him drive faster when they were pushed against the rear glass as he accelerated..he had a thing for yellow cars his weekend runaround was yellow TR6 and a Mk2 Mini Cooper that he spent a fortune on to get it to do 105 mph ... so the yellow Volvo was perfect..bless him 😅 keep up the good work chaps

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Cheers, Alan - good story

[@johnwilliamson8110]

Alan Wayte enjoyed your reminiscence...

[@gerritlageweg2055]

My first car was a 245 turbo in 1981, drove it for 20 years, had a V70r and other V70’s. Always owned Volvo’s since 1981.

[@Nine9Three]

The Car Guys and Harry's, the only two channels that I honestly look forward to new content. Future collaboration?

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Would be nice

[@julianevans9548]

Jayemm is good too.

[@MyRetroWatches]

Have you seen Car Throttle channel guys ? It’s also great with a massive sub count., I watch them, the car guys (my fav) and Harry . Sometimes JWW

[@stephenlane9127]

Tom SPOT ON! I wholeheartedly agree with you on that comment! That would be a fantastic dream KZbin collaboration!

[@stevenhuskinson2073]

Agreed! Car Guys and Harry's Garage are in a different league to the rest

[@richardmiller257]

The turning circle was actually quite good. And the sunroom is electric. Great job guys

[@celilexus]

I love the color and the car.

[@2012hinn]

Am from Singapore. As a teen, my parents had an 850 GLE estate 2L 20v engine. It was such a joy to drive even in base configuration and the 5cyl engine was music to my ears, the interior was so practical and despite the boxy shape it was handsome and well proportioned ... as a result I still lust after the T5R to this day, and hope to get one. And I agree I’d get the green one as well :)

[@septicflamezz775]

i have a green one, not a T5R sadly, mine's a TDI

[@ohadparan2853]

Hey guys, writing to you from California. I have a deep relationship with this car. My father bought himself this exact model for his 40th birthday. He modified it to 350 bhp and it did 350,000 miles before it was rear-ended and totaled. It is a phenomenal machine that deserves all the praise you give it.

[@thePaintbrushKid]

Its 2024 and i just purchased a 1996 850 turbo wagon..... it is amazing!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Yes yes yes! You legend! Enjoy it, my friend 👏🏻

[@64bakes]

Genuinely love these things. My dad a T5R saloon in green when I was in my early teens. Called it the "flying brick". Went like a rocket. We did actually do a touch over 150 in it on the A1 one day. Felt very stable but lots of wind noise! People used to move over when they saw it as they assumed it was an unmarked traffic car 🤣 I remember a school friend being adamant that his Dad's Vectra V6 was quicker.... until my dad took him out in the Volvo and he soon realised. Ours was eventually sold to a guy who ran it into the ground and moved it on for peanuts. Shame as it was in really great shape when we had it.

[@markturner1620]

Brilliant. Remember being driven around by the local vet in a T5 estate. Getting to an emergency he didn't hang around and its one of my best memories from the 90s!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Awesome

[@MyRetroWatches]

That must be the quietist pub in England fellas! This was a fantastic trip down memory lane, I’m of the same era! I remember meeting Tim Harvey back then , maybe his championship year , he was driving the 3 series Listerine BMW. As a 20 year old lad in 1992 this was a monumental event! Always loved the touring car championship. Good video, loads of innuendo it’s straight out of a carry on film 😂 Nice watches ! Doxa I love and the Black Bay is a favourite

[@TheCarGuysTV]

My Retro Watches Glad you enjoyed it, my friend

[@MalcolmCrabbe]

I used to work for a guy who owned several cars back in the mid 1990's. For his daily driver he got one of these in racing green. I was insured on the cars so I could drive him to the airport etc and it was the turning point for me.. I wanted one so bad. Didn't quite get there, but I now own a 21 year old P1 V70 and it still drives as smooth as the day it rolled off the production line and hasn't failed an MOT yet ! - Great cars

[@TheCarGuysTV]

👍

[@jerrywarren9708]

Thanks for doing this one. I had a 96 850R wagon with a third row seat for the kids. Great for everyday use, enjoyable for long hauls. Had a roof rack for the bicycles, a second set of wheels for winter tires. Interior had lots of alcantara and contrast piping on the seats, plus lovely woodwork. It did become a frequent visitor at the local mechanic and eventually went to the next happy owner.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

You’re welcome - not the usual KZbin fare, but we film what we like on this channel 👍

[@kiko1605]

If I win the lottery... 100% a T5R is going in the dreamgarage, and yes in yellow

[@Shifty_Malone]

I might look at the R if I won...

[@paulanderson79]

I think you'll be waiting quite a while. There are very few left now.

[@tompirozek4490]

I had an 850R saloon in red, with rare black interior and even rarer than that was a manual, absolute rocket ship in its day but traction control was non existent and you could cook the discs in one or two attempts at late braking, that said it put a smile on my face everytime I drove it

[@jaunteraudi817]

850R are a bit expensive these days, but there are some good 850 T5 with allmoust the same engine and 220 hp and oportunity with manual gearbox. And S70 T5 has the power of 850R 240 hp, so in my opinion these 850R are for collectors right now.

[@winzzi]

Id get cream yellow T5R and lazer blue mk1 V70R. The absolute best of p80 chassis.

[@djclabbe88]

Love that car 😊 Had one in 2006, it was my first car. Manual transmission and tuned to 320hp Here in Sweden they are known as the T-Gul (T-Yellow) I probably buy one again, so many memories 😎

[@TheCarGuysTV]

👍👍

[@michaeltempsch5282]

And T-Gul is is a brand of BBQ lighter fluid from Kemetyl. Other special edition came in pale red - of course got the nick T-Röd, which is denatured alcohol stove fuel/cleaner/frost protectant. And the pale blue one - T-blå which is alcohol based windshield washer fluid.

[@SeanHendy]

I just remember, etched into my memory, a tv programme about motorway police during which they were talking about having recently taken delivery of the 850 T5, and I quote “we like it, we really like it, a lot” with a big smile on their faces.

[@drewalsup9200]

I drive a 99 v70 cross country awd wagon it has basically the same turbo engine but with variable valve timing and all wheel drive its probably slightly detuned from the type R cars but I did find a set of 19 inch type R wheels for it in a junkyard here in USA I just finished a full cylinder head rebuild and its going back together now I absolutely love my Volvo

[@JonasSahlstrom1]

I drove and reviewed it when it was presented back in the day. Magnificent car!

[@mark-1rc502]

Someone at my old work place had one of these, same colour, a work friend of mine just bought a flashy New BMW 523i M sport. Few days Later he come crying to me “Mark man” I just got smoked by the yellow Volvo in the car park, I laughed , your new bmw with 170bhp against 250bhp Volvo He was like “WTF” . 😢😢😢😢

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Mark C Great story

[@99unclebob]

i would laugh to, new BMW'S are crap, the saying is once the warranty is gone trade it in for a new or get rid of it, my old boss always buys the big beemers 750 il and the new 8 series ,they are bloody awesome inside and out, loads of tech, AWD, Bi turbo v8 and its the same price as a Benz which is nicer and way better quality all the way round and reliable and does not loose its value as quick for $10,000 more, he didn't care he likes beemers its a younger mans car I laughed and said your almost 50, he wasn't too happy after that so i left his office,LMAO 🤣

[@mark-1rc502]

Bob Church A few guys where i work now like their diesel’s , one has a 320ed F30, the other got a C220cdi sport, The Merc is way nicer that ED bmw is really 💩. The Merc feels like it has some serious grunt more than the BMW, the other guy has a Jaguar XE 20d 180. The jag feels quite lethargic. However if you choose to change up manually with the shifters, around 3.5k - 3.7k Rpm it keeps it in the sweet spot for torque, but in auto it’s Lazy to change gear in S it holds the gear too long for a diesel . The bmw has a good driving position but that’s about it . I haven’t owned a bmw since I got rid of my rot box E30 325i rusted out in the boot by the battery, the Speedo Kept packing up, The F30 guy needs a front hub bearing every few months and the merc has two new Front wishbones or something in two years . My Humble Focus ST just needs regular service, a drop of oil here n there. And Front tyres to the plenty . I guess every car has its pro& cons There is no perfect car these days . My Mrs has my Dads 2003 Focus 1.6 ghia since he can’t drive no more. I don’t remember the last time that was serviced it runs a treat and it’s worth less than a decent pair of Shoes 🤣

[@shaneking4312]

I've beaten Bmws in my 15 year old Corolla Tsport

[@xzarx]

@@mark-1rc502 are you talking about an 320 efficent dynamics?.... Thats like an eco version of the 320d. Sure the mercs 4 cylinder with its 2.2l engine sounds much better, but I doubt that you would prefer it to a 330d with 6 cylinders.

[@m44kts]

Around 2004 at the age of 20 when all my mates were running around in Saxo’s and 106’s, I bought a ‘96 850 T-5 saloon in black, absolutely loved it, it was the choice car whenever we went anywhere, including 5 up, 27 hour, 1200 mile round trip to Paris. The car was superb, totally comfortable, quick and effortless. I have a huge soft spot for 850’s, my only regret is that I passed up the opportunity to part-ex mine for a yellow T-5R estate because it had 140k on the clock at the time and I felt it was a bit high mileage. It was pristine too. That’s the power of hindsight though I suppose, would absolutely love one now. Maybe it’s just the rose tinted glasses I need to remove! Anyway, thanks for a brilliant video, the memories came flooding back, mine was auto too and had the ability to hit an indicated 90mph in 2nd gear if you shifted at the right point. Happy days!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Great stories & memories - thanks for sharing and glad you liked the episode 👍

[@derekfinnegan734]

What a car. The T-5R was my car of choice on the PlayStation back in the day. When I moved into my first house, I had the loan of a 850 GLT, was just as much fun to drive a my R50 MINI Cooper that I had at the time. Even when fully loaded.

[@01stum]

As a child growing up with Volvos my friends thought I was daft with my soft spot for them. Then as I was older , they went Racing with the 850 then the police started using them and of course the crazy yellow monster can along and they didn’t mock me anymore. Great video as always guys. Ohh and use to have a Fiesta Turbo which use to jump around. But do miss the unpredictability of it plus how much they are worth now..

[@TheCarGuysTV]

s maddison 👍👍👍

[@stevenhuskinson2073]

Absolutely superb video as always! Loved growing up in the 90's watching the BTCC. The 850 T5R is awesome

[@richardw64]

I share your passion for this and other Volvos. Everything is neat and purposeful. Great video guys.

[@adammelville1077]

Amazing how these have a failed a massive following of late and are really becoming an appreciating asset. I sell Volvo’s for my job, would love to see one of these in our showroom as an ornament.

[@RichieRouge206]

My friend took his 850R to Ty-Lon Volvo on Anglesey with a few fellow Volvoists - they loved it

[@mjohns5944]

Brilliant. My first Volvo was the 850 then I got a V70T5. After several Volvo's later, including an XC60 Polestar I have today picked up my new V60 T5 R-Design Pro. But I never forget the sound of that 850 2.5 engine. Bullet proof.

[@bc82870]

I was studying in the UK when 850 estate came race BTCC. This episode brought me good memories. Thanks.

[@houseyUK]

I remember when these first came out. My dad and I borrowed one (he was in a Carlton 24v at the time) and spanked it around the Midlands for a day. Great car back then, torquesteer everywhere but sound quick and amazingly ran an M5 close (E28) as I recall from the day.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

👍👍

[@venom5809]

Friend's dad when I was in high school had one of these and also had an 850 R sedan too, goddamn they were some of the best cars to this day. So glad I was able to experience these cars when they were new.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Wish we did - this is the next best thing

[@venom5809]

@@TheCarGuysTV Few things more gangster in life than a fire engine red Volvo that's also fast as hell.

[@randypurtteman1183]

Volvo 850 T5, the car that dreams are made of. I love this car. I had a yellow 850T5 sedan in this yellow, a color which I personally hate. I also owned a '97 850 turbo sedan and an 97 Turbo wagon both in a beautiful green. I've been looking for another prime example I can take to the grave. Better this than anything. One day...

[@euroshark1]

It's not a 200mph, $300K, 700hp 2 door supercar, but I like it. Well done lads.

[@timmietz]

16:17 “I might be spoiled”... yeah, an understatement of the century, sir!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Tim Tursonoff 😂😂😂😂

[@wuzzup95LP]

Just bought my 850 T-5r today and i love it.

[@janibeg3247]

i had a 1995 Volvo 850 turbo. I kept it for 22 years until it was time to buy a new car. It was great fun to drive.

[@RogerBaileyOnCars]

great old Volvo, I remember them well - love it, more old cars please car guys

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Roger Bailey Coming right up 😂😂

[@FelixIsMyName]

Always wanted to drive one of these. I fondly remember the BTCC from the 90's

[@macmurati]

Hey folks, just a little bit of background info on these cars. The t5rs in my opinion are one of the cheapest collectable cars you can buy because they serve no purpose in terms of motorsport. The btcc touring cars were base na models with heavily reworked engines. The heads alone were upwards of 10k I believe. The track did not have the front air dam either. The t5r was really more of a marketing gimmick. With that said, they are lovely cars. Porsche worked closely with volvo to provide minor tuning and some interior details. As far as fast volvos, this generation pales in comparison to the later v70 and s60 r cars as those two received adaptive dampers, brembo brakes, heavily bolstered seats, bespoke six speed transmissions, bored 5 cylinder with upgrade turbo, manifold, injectors, tune, and intake. Still loved my 95 Gul sedan. Wish I never sold my v70r.

[@aphex14]

So content I have one, but it's an '98 V70 T5. Always looking for the 850 T5 R in the States. Exactly as I remembered seeing a release article in Autoweek back in the 90s. Excellent review you guys performed with the purist passion and respect for it! Well Done!!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Thanks, Herb

[@1969ashley1969]

I was at every BTCC race when the Volvos were there. I went for the Volvo while at each meet I was with 3 total Alfa fans. Loved giving them shit when a Volvo estate car beat them. So yeah, I would have been at the same place as you guys watching these beasts.

[@paulpearson3744]

My friend. the estate version never won a single race in btcc. if they finished ahead of alfa in any race? then it was coz alfa crashed. This car finished 14th in the championship in 94. The saloon version was third in the championship and not til 95 season. The 2 twitts who made this video have got it arse about face. I have the 2 seasons on DVD. I dunno how people make these kind of errors. I knew this stuff when I was a kid.

[@rezaq1]

I have a V70 T5 with 264k and a manual gearbox. All original, still on factory turbo! I’ve just rebuilt all the suspension which was knackered. Fabulous cars.

[@jamielearmonth1039]

Should should definitely buy this for the collection. Such a cool car and a one off with mileage and condition

[@stuie46]

I was the first to drive the 855 T5R in my dealership back in the Nineties. Two yellow ones came into stock and I had to drive them from the Sales Dept to my workshop - great cars.

[@siennamayh]

I lusted after a t5 in my youth. The local traffic cops had them. The first car I ever drove was my parents Volvo 240GL estate. I’ve ended up with a Saab estate these days. Not quite the same. But still has a touch of Swedish cool about it.

[@michaelfreestone6213]

I had a manual Black T5R M registered back in the days after they first came out as a company car! I did 77K miles in two years. The only issue were the Pirelli Zero tyres. They lasted about 9000 miles . I had the local Kwik Fit guys get some stock in for me. The police only did 5-6k miles on their tyres!!!! What a wonderful car it was .

[@michaelmccarthy3357]

I have been driving my white 850r manual estate for the last seven years and I absolutely love it!.. It's my fifth 850r and I would never part with it!.. It still hands out some embarrassing beatings on my morning commute to work!..#Volvoforlife...

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Michael Mccarthy 👍👍👍

[@antonygriffiths6764]

Boxy but great. You guys’ quirky obsession with cars like this is what makes the Car Guys Channel one of the best on You Tube. I remember the BTCC and these Volvo’s. Never had a hankering to own or drive one, but, have thoroughly enjoyed your review of this 850 T5-R. 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Thanks, Antony. Sadly not “best” when it comes to subscribers though 😂

[@Sonny13_]

boys drive Hondas, Men drive BMW, Legends drive Volvo T5R

[@theothertonydutch]

Fascists divide things into categories.

[@lopezdecastilla]

@@theothertonydutch Well done, you just blanket categorised people who do that into a category, you are therefore also a fascist, oh shit...and by definition I am a fascist too!

[@1700iDiGuy]

Correction... small penis’d guys buy bmws

[@lopezdecastilla]

@Phil Rudd If you were in a room full of car enthusiasts you would probably be asked to leave the room Phil. What a terrible and factually untrue comment!

[@НаскоКараколев]

Yeeeeeeeeeah, not sure about the men part

[@masterdaveedwards]

There's thousands of them! You're killing me! I love it...you guys are priceless

[@robormiston2841]

I had an 1987 760 turbo sedan. My friend turned a screw in the Westgate valve and that car was fast. It had 220,000 miles on it too and ran perfect. I loved that car, it was rear wheel drive, turbo iron block 4 cylinder with a Garet T3 turbo from the factory. I think they are set at 7 lbs of boost and we estimated we had mine set at about 12 lbs of boost. It was plenty fast. But he said we could turn it up to 30! But it probably wouldn't last long lol. You could turn it around in a 2 lane road. It was like the one in the games bind movies, even blue like the one in the movies. You guys would love that car. I don't have it anymore but I wish I did. That car ate ALOT of other cars unsuspectingly. I don't think I have ever had a car make me laugh as much as that car.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

We love them too

[@JamesCherrill]

just bought a manual black estate T-5R, shes running just south of 300bhp, going for a very pretty penny now, best purchase i've ever made

[@TheCarGuysTV]

#Jealous

[@JamesCherrill]

TheCarGuys.TV I'm jealous of myself every time I open the garage now 😂

[@marcnobel3938]

I love the story about what TWR did with the Cylinder Heads of the Touring car to get into decent power. - Even when the road car has nothing to do with that, I always need to smile and remember that time.

[@stoatrepublic]

Gezzer in our town had one, knew how to drive it, that car didn't have a dull life, daily tourer driven hard and literally thrown around the countryside it was.

[@nils1471]

The only car that I don't get back pain in..those seats are great

[@TheCarGuysTV]

👍👍

[@burningXtheXchip]

The best part of these and the older ones is how easy you can make them faster. That or the crash footage there is with the people walking away when they shouldn't.

[@stephenlane9127]

Gosh you can tell we're all of the same age! (give or take a few years +/-) and thinning on top, but I remember the BTCC back then was mesmerising TV watching on Saturday! Ant blindingly great video Damian & Jason, loving your work guys!! (also... your right about the buttons, designed to be used when you're driving the car, safety first with Volvo!! its interior styling is functional and clean, practical). Really glad you've reviewed 850 T-5R this guys. Great memories in the UK before I emigrated to NZ. Quick suggestion: Buy that Volvo and wrap it in BRC - perfect!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Stephen Lane Cheers, Stephen - glad you liked it

[@paulanderson79]

I remember these well. In the mid-late 1990's they were all over British roads. We had a fleet demonstrator on loan for a couple of weeks. There was no shortage of enthusiasm for it but I don't think any of us chose one as our next company car.

[@FrostedSeagull]

Lol. Out of ALL the cars you guys have reviewed the only one I've been in. Yeah, they cost as much as Mercedes in Australia. My friends dad had a silver one. We used to blow away Ausiie muscle cars ! The look on the muscle cars owners faces was priceless as we went passed them. 🤣🤣

[@Ramjet164]

“I want to feel like I’m driving a wardrobe at all times” lol, brilliant. I was a passenger in one of these back in the day a few times, felt like a rocket ship/wardrobe tbh.

[@VinDieselS70]

The V70R Is even bigger. Had a 53 Plate V70 D5 and it was massive. Like a tank so no wonder the Police used it around the world. Very strong Built too. Rear ended a car who had stalled it's engine and there were no visible damage on the D5. Car was written off as the airbags had gone off and too expensive to repair. The other car rattled and had to go in for quite a repair.. and that was a Nissan Juke. I just drove away after all the paperwork and to my surprise Aircon and everything else just worked like nothing had happened. If you can get hold of a Volvo just get any V70 op to 2007, as they're all the same. It's an upgraded 850.

[@ingolf7411]

A 850 2.5-20V station car was my first Volvo in 1996. An excellent car. More Volvos did follow, currently a XC90 Inscription is my "castle" 😉. The 850 T-5R was a real dream car.

[@glenhowell3420]

i had a dark green 850R manual for four years and i loved it. this brings back great memories and I am tempted to get another one !

[@aviation-reality]

Love to see people appreciate these lovely cars. I have a -96 model, probably one of the best maintained still on the roads. I bought it in 2004 and I haven't been able to sell it since. =)

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Honestly, we were blown away by this car. Always loved them, and it lived up to expectations. :)

[@alexmartinez280]

The “premium sound system” in those cars is flat out phenomenal. Seriously, best sound system I’ve experienced and way better than the HK in the BMWs I later owned. This evolve seats were crazy comfortable. I drove the All Terrain version that was lifted and I loved it when I thought I I’ll of it at first sight. I’d love another one in the future and the R is awesome. Love these cool cars that are not Supercar territory videos so thanks for the episode. Cheers guys!

[@rattlehead890]

I loved (and still do) them, had a black 850R and 2x V70R. Amazing cars!!!!

[@archibaldchimpin]

My absolutely favourite car, I saw it in the flesh when it was first released, at the Autosport show in 19, something, and it just blew me away. Those insanely low profile tyres at the time, on a barge like that, well what can I say, I fucking love the thing, if I had money I’d buy one in a flash.

[@flavioc5389]

Manual trans and a bigger turbo, all you need to vastly improve this gem.

[@urbankotto9685]

I agree these Engins can take a big turbo,And you need a beefy manual geerbox.

[@JamesCherrill]

Big turbo... one way to bend the rods immediately...

[@masterdaveedwards]

I still have one! I love driving it! It's black. I live in Canada. It has issues but I would love to restore it. Thanks for the video. Love the enthusiasm.

[@spaceexplorer6636]

My dream Volvo. Have a v70 T5 now same hp but not the style of 850T5R. Have to give a shoutout to the S60R Volvo 6 speed manual that I owned a few years back, hands down the best all around performance Volvo of all time. Love Volvo’s.

[@johndue2366]

In the 240 estate two people could sleep in the back really comfortable. In the 940 estate, the length of the rear bay was somewhat shorter, but much wider. The 850 and the V70II does not allow a good sleep in the bay, - it is too short. All of the above had close to perfect round vision due to the large windows, - something I have always appreciated. Since Ford and later, Greedy bought Volvo, styling has been more important than passive safety and usefulness. I have owned all the above versions of Volvo, but a V70II T2 and a S60I T2 will be my last Volvo cars. The brand has changed from something special with safety and usefulness as the most important to 'We do not want to be different' kind of design. /JD

[@TheCarGuysTV]

I hear you, John

[@nowayout20042003]

Remember seeing these old Volvo’s going around in he 90’s & was always wondering why many didn’t drive them. Now 25 years later I’m driving a V60 D4R, if possible I’ll try get one of these one day

[@bendelandesful]

Bought myself three month ago a V70 mk1 from 1997. Love it

[@fthyme87]

I learned to drive in dads dark green (no black plastic) 850 R manual. I loved that thing :) !

[@timmietz]

Wow, I remember these cars! A friend of mine actually had a 1996 sedan one of these. I remember getting that thing up to 145MPH once. I thought they were super cool back then and it definitely amazing today.

[@dancampbell3068]

Always wanted one of these since I was at school. Want one even more now. I do have a mk1 C70 T5 coupe now, also with an auto though. Watching the speedo climb at full throttle still makes me chuckle. Love these engines.

[@ryanmicklewright9099]

I remember having a T5 with 7 seats, manual gearbox on a P plate. Was great fun. Would cruise effortlessly on motorways and I always said was a fun to corner and shocking how you'd approach a corner twice as fast as you thought you would, yet it always got round. Loved it, good fun when you wanted to play, comfortable and relaxing to drive when you were just chilling. The lack of kick down the guys mention is more than likely because they had big torque to get to the turbo. Certainly with mine, it would do 0-60 in pretty much the same time (if you were quick enough with the gear change) changing gear at 3k rpm or going up to the red line. Where ever the thing is in its rev range it would just get up and go. OK by today's standards it's not really that fast anymore but I remember mine being 15 when I owned it, had close to 200k on the clock and still kept a standard Subaru WRX honest, well until the corner, then the scooby would bugger off 😂

[@papanoel3999]

What a car this always was.i bloody wanted 1 but never got to get and own 1.havent drove 1 either.missed out there didn't I.

[@kwadjutsufpv273]

240hp was crazy back in the day. I got to drive yellow, black and green T-5Rs, all manuals. That 5 cylinder sounded good. Good times.

[@IRollEngineer]

Happy to see you guys being so excited. Maybe too excited for the wrong reasons. A few things we need to get straight. I know the video is a year old but I think people will still see it in many years to come. *T-5R is not a homologation vehicle for BTCC/super touring/FIA class II. *Volumes are 2537 cream yellow, 2516 stone black and 1911 olive green. And a few test cars and a special order to the Middle East in various colors. *Square tailpipe was used on all Turbo/T5's. Not T-5R specific but anyway... *Seat belts. Self adjusting height. Seems to be working fine. *Built in child booster seat. Nothing wrong with that even with todays standards. Still have that option in the current cars.

[@ainthatcosta8490]

My father has a manual full extras T-5R in dark green, unfortunately lost both the rims and the front bumper on a crash back in 2005, but the 240bhp is still there along with the turbo and the fun!

[@petermcelvogue7521]

It's amazing how the SAAB 95 Aero was very similar in terms of interior design & power to this car.

[@paddy1437]

9-5 was aero is more powerful than this :)

[@petermcelvogue7521]

The first SAAB 9-5 Aero had 250bhp that was the same as the Volvo 850R then the SAAB was increased to 260bhp later on. Both cars used a 2.3 turbocharged engines.

[@kingofohio5689]

@@petermcelvogue7521 saab didnt use volvo 2.3t 5cyls. ONLY 4cyl turbos

[@faster4tec]

They were competitors in the same market, hence so similar, the volvo handles a lot better stock, though both can be improved even more

[@topspoke]

The first 9-5 aero came with 230 hp with the the same engine as the 9-3 viggen, then those mad Swedes thought nah needs more boost! and upped the output to 250 hp in '99 I think. In 2006 they redesigned the intake to the turbo to gain 6 more horses for the Dame Edna face lift model. Easy to tune to 300 hp with stock internals 😜. Saab were doing side impact protection in the 70's already but without the stickers! In its time the saab 9-5 was voted the safest car by Swedish insurance companies.

[@legambaz]

Obviously an exceedingly insightful, factual, tasteful and entertaining production this is. What a pleasure. Thanx.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Glad you liked it

[@99unclebob]

in Canada we got an 850 ASR AWD that had the same 5 cylinder, 20 valve turbo that gave you 260 bhp and with a turbo plus kit from Volvo for a $1000 CDN some hardware/some tune, gave you 20 more bhp and 28 more ft lbs of torque, i think ours would do according to one of our customers he said it did 165 mph on his radar speed unit, I recently drove a 1999 S70R AWD with 477000 kms on it and still went like hell and is awesome in 9" of fresh snow we had about 2 weeks ago, nice video i would take one of these in a heart beat if i could buy one in good shape, I was lucky to be employed by Volvo Canada in sales and leasing back in the day, nothing nicer or better on the market back in the early 90's and reliable far more than any other german or european equivalent .,you just gave away your age when you said at premium sound system in gold script that's the same as Rothmans or John Players Special, and i am about 15 years older than you 2 are, funny i use to smoke Rothmans cigarettes about 25 + yrs ago,😎 these models are better than the S70's are because they went to drive by wire throttles, if they wore out on you you could only but them from Volvo for 700 pounds plus 1 hour charge to program the new part which was highway robbery, 850 is just a better piece of kit as you say

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Fantastic info - cheers

[@hansvader7515]

I love my red 850R (manual). Hope to get it to the Nordschleife again this year :)

[@cetorbett]

I had a red 855 T5. Loved it. The thought of tracking it sounds awesome. Good luck!

[@celtic1522]

The BTCC cars were not 850 T 5R's, they were 2 litre NA engined wagons with micky mouse special heads fitted. The 850 Volvo and its 5 cylinder engine make a remarkable unit. The 70 series that followed was just as awesome in my opinion. In my yard I have a 850 turbo, 850 t 5r, 850r, a series 1 V70 with a 10 valve engine, also a series 2 V70 t5. Of all of them the most fun to drive is the 850r which has an ARD green chip in the ECU but for going longer distance the series 2 V70 t5 offers better comfort.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

You are our new hero

[@Bonzoguy66]

David Edmond , in Italy, Volvo sold a 2.0 20v NA . That was the closest to the TW Racing engine, in a normal Volvo. I had a -97 model 2.0 10v , the last 855 , before V 70 .

[@celtic1522]

@@Bonzoguy66 Italy was a country that got the 850 t5 R's as 2 litre turbo engined in any case, had something to do with taxation due to engine size or something like that. They had a better fuel map than the 2.3 litre turbo engine did when compared to make up for the loss of 300c.c. from the powerpant.

[@Bonzoguy66]

In Denmark , we also had the T5 , based on the 2.0 , but I never found a NA 2.0 20v.

[@yutehube4468]

The wheels 😍Without doubt a special car. Not many cars can get away with being an estate and yet back in the day and even more so now, it would make your day if you saw one. Rare to see back then and today practically non-existent.

[@martinlund9524]

There is a few small facts that is wrong. They did built 2537 (2500) yellow and 2516 (2500) black. Then they did 1911 Green, the Green was not in this time set to be a T-5R. Total of 6964 .. And a top of that a few pre produktions cars. Like 3 grey T-5R, 2 white, 2 in aubergine, The funny thing is in Sweden the first T-5R was a black one!

[@tymac3306]

As a kid (I’m now 41) I was the only kid my age who loved this car, and G60 synchro VW Passats, GLX VR6 Jettas, and how could I not mention the early to mid 80’s Audi 5000 Quattro 5cyl turbo cars. My friends had pinups of lotus, Ferrari etc. While I had mountains of magazines car &driver, Motor Trend etc. If there was a German or Swedish car on the cover I had it. For years as a kid from 12 to 17 I had no idea what VR6 not only meant, but the actual platform and how it’s design worked. I was hooked! I had many toy dinky cars with working suspension. Majourette made the best. Today I am on my 5th Volkswagen it’s a 2018 VW Golf R 4motion AWD. IF YOU TOLD MY 12 year old self that I would one day own a 292 bhp Golf I would have laughed. The VR6 had the biggest numbers back then for VW 178hp In the Corrado and 172 in the GLX VR6 Passats & Jettas? I seen a concept of a mini van by VW with the 2.8 VR6, if I remember correctly it was super or Turbocharged VR6 with 252hp which blew my mind lol so a 300 hp 2.0 I would have thought you a nutter.

[@davidguest5268]

Just seen this, you are right never meet your heroes. So 5 years ago I brought an Olive Green 850R manual estate. Slighty modified and I love driving it. Always admired and constantly asked if I want to sell. No!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Good for you

[@jazwal1981]

Always loved these. And absolutely love a yellow car 😁

[@BobbyAngmalaysia]

Really entertaining review! Much better than the blokes from top gear magazine, autocar, auto express ... you guys rock! I'm also a wagpn fan, love the T5R since school days but not to the extent of wanting to own one but would be awe at one. Had the Legacy BP5, then an S4 Avamt and now an RS6 C7. Good stuff guys!

[@TheCarGuysTV]

Thanks, Bobby

[@arightpest3367]

I had a 850 est i bought it with 92000 miles on the clock it was the 20v 2.0 manual it towed my caravan it ran to Switzerland for six years full with my family and fully loaded up with camping gear it finally was traded in for another car when it hit 175000 miles on the clock. it was still on its original exhaust with Volvo stamped on the main silencer and the car never missed a beat i still miss the dam thing 12 years later, i would buy another and the one you test drove was my dream car many years ago even with the auto box. i must not look on ebay step away from the computer.

[@TheCarGuysTV]

👍👍

[@1professor]

I love that car! My dad took me car shopping and we went to checkout Volvo’s. When we got to the showroom the salesperson steered my dad to this car (new at the time) and we went on a test drive. The salesperson scared the crap out of us by proceeding to drive like a lunatic. (We hit 90 mph down a busy city street) The whole time the salesperson kept talking about how Volvo’s aren’t just family cars. We thanked him and left! My dad bought a used BMW 5 series instead. I will alway remember that test drive for the rest of my life! (I still talk about it every time I go test drive a car with the salesperson. )

[@1professor]

Mohammed Was-a-pee-dough that’s funny! I still agree the BMW was the right move to make.

[@1professor]

Mohammed Was-a-pee-dough I’m also glad to know you find driving 90 mph on a busy public street with strangers in a car a “blast”.

[@1professor]

Mohammed Was-a-pee-dough hahaha! Fair enough! 😬